Hide and Seek
by x-jordz
Summary: The sequel of Female Influence. Kate's been missing for a while, 4 years to be exact. Can Dean find her? Does she want to be found? Depression and character death in this one. you'll have to read F.I first. R and R please
1. The Battle is not Won yet

_Ahhhhh, it's so refreshing to start a new page after I've been stuck on the last chapter of Female Influence for so long. This is the second instalment of the story, Hide and Seek._

Hide and Seek is all about the search for Kate. Where will they find her, how will she react? All is revealed as to why Kate left so suddenly after the accident. Does she want to be found?

_You have to remember that John Winchester would be 55-60 now._

_Also that Kate adopted a little girl. (crowd goes 'awwwwwww') her name's Elle and she's 3. she's from an orphanage in England and Kate became her legal guardian when Elle was only a few months old._

Chapter 1: The battle is not won yet.

Dean rapped on the door of the small white cottage. After 2 months of research he was sure this was his sister's house. A shadow moved towards the door, disfigured by the dimpled glass panes that separated Dean and the possible truth. The door opened and a lady stood there. She was slightly shorter than Dean and had long fiery red hair tied back loosely by a purple rubber band.

"can I help you?" she asked and Dean held up a detectives badge, "do you know where I could find a Kate Winchester?" he stated and the lady stepped back, "I think she was the girl that lived here before my husband and I. Hold on and I'll just check" she moved away from the door and the name Jack echoed though the small building. After a while a man accompanied the lady to the door.

"I'm sorry but we don't know a Kate Winchester. Is there anything else you need to know?" he asked sternly and Dean shook his head. "very good" the man said and closed the door in Dean's face. "the people here are such bitches!" Dean exclaimed under his breath as he got into Sam's car. Sam had allowed him to borrow it for the weekend but it was obvious that he would get it back early.

_The other side of that door._

"thanks for saving my neck, Jack" Kate exclaimed and flopped down onto the couch. Jack wasn't her husband, he was her best friend. They'd lived together as housemates for about a month; with work and everything that had been happening she wasn't ready to face Dean just yet. "who was that anyway?" Jack asked and Kate flipped in between channels on the TV, "that, was my brother." Jack sat down next to her,

"I never knew you had a brother!' he exclaimed and Kate held two fingers up, "two" she said simply. Jack looked confused, "two what?" Kate let her hand drop to the couch, "two. I have two brothers. Dean's my age and Sammy would be about 26 now" Jack paced the length of the sofa behind her, "why didn't you invite him in?"

Kate stood up abruptly, "we haven't had the best history. Did you notice that really obvious limp he had? I caused that 4 years ago!" Jack grabbed her arm softly, "sit down and tell me about it" Kate shook her head. "please?" he asked nicely and she pulled away, "no, Jack! I need to go visit a few people. Can you look after Elle for me?" she shrugged a jacket on and grabbed her handbag.

"ok then. I'll see you later?" he called after her and she waved her hand in a dismissive manner without looking at him. She jumped into the car and made her way to Lawrence, the next town. She reached it in under an hour and she knocked sharply on a large wooden door. A plump black woman stood in front of her now. "Kate, I've been waiting for you" she stated warmly and Kate broke down as soon as she had shut the door.

"Dean came to my house this afternoon" she managed to spurt out between sobs and Missouri enveloped her in a hug. "I know, honey. I know." She murmured into Kate's hair, "let it all out". Kate sat down on the low couch, "I had to lie and get my best friend to pose as my husband and… it scared me with how much regret I'm feeling" Missouri sat down next to her, "you know there's only one person who can truly help. Why don't you go see him?"

Kat nodded, "I should. Can I come by tonight and maybe stay here?" she asked and Missouri hugged her again, "you are always welcome here Kate, you know that! Now go talk to him and I guarantee that you'll feel better soon enough" Kate snatched up her bag and got into the car once again.

Wallace Rodgers' Memorial Hospice residents didn't consider themselves terminally ill; just that they had limited time before they kicked the bucket. John Winchester was one of them. Kate's chiffon skirt billowed through the hallways of this fine institute until she came face to face with her father's door. The room was brightly lit and made it seem like 12 in the afternoon, not 8 at night.

The darkness didn't seem to be able to creep in and Kate thought her father liked it better this way. nothing much to worry about now, just the future. She opened the door quietly but John's hearing was still sharp. His head whipped around so fast that Kate thought it might detach and keep on spinning. "Katie" he said softly and Kate ran into his open arms.

"Daddy, I've missed you so much! Has Sammy been to see you yet?" she asked and sat on the edge of the bed next to the man she had idolised for so long. Her father shook his head, "no. Dean came to visit a few weeks ago but he didn't stay long. Couldn't stand to see his dad like this, eh?" he said quietly and Kate patted his arm,

"you know that whatever happens to you; I won't stop coming to see you, ok?" she said and he clasped her hand, "I know that." He changed the subject, "so how's my little girl?" he asked and Kate smiled again, "just dandy. It's really helping now that Jack's moved in with me." She stopped as her father started chuckling, "Dandy. You sound like your mother!" he sighed.

"Dad" she started and her father murmured a reply, "you promised me that when this was all over you'd tell me about mum. What was she like?" her father stared at the wall in front of him, "she was a lot like you. She doted on her 3 children like they were royalty but strict when she needed to be. Her favourite time of the day was morning; getting up and seeing that we had all survived another night of our lives."

He told her lots of stories, wonderful stories. The one about when she had gone ice skating and almost lost Dean and Kate in the early months of her pregnancy. Another about losing Kate under a pile of cereal boxes during a trip to the supermarket. Then the one about complications during Sam's birth and the number of names that Mary had called John while pushing fiercely.

Kate stayed silent for the whole time, listening to her father laugh, some thing he hadn't done much in the last 26 years. She missed the fun they had before mum died. Kate couldn't understand why her dad had admitted himself 2 years ago. He claimed he was getting old but she knew he was tired of the life he had lived and just wanted to shut himself away from it. That's when they discovered the cancer for the first time.

He wasn't ready to leave them yet and he still had a battle to conquer. That battle was to get all of his children together again. He could understand the fact that Kate was scared but as Winchesters they were taught to forgive and forget almost automatically. John needed a plan, and fast.

"Kate?" he asked and looked over at her. Kate's eyelids were drooping, "yeah?" she replied sleepily. "I need you to do something for me" Kate's eyes widened, "what is it?" she asked and sat up. "I need you to see Dean for me"

she stood up, "absolutely not! That's one thing I won't do! You expect me to just waltz in and say 'hey brother, I'm back in your life'?" John nodded, 'that was the general plan. I'll let Sammy know about it and then you can work something out" Kate shook her head angrily, "I wont do it!" she exclaimed and John raised the volume of his voice, "Kate, I am dying and there are 2 things I want. One is to see my wife alive again and the other is to see my children on speaking terms!"

he put his hand to his chest and huge rasping coughs come out. Kate sat next to him and got him to lean forward, hitting and rubbing his back softly until the coughing subsided. He continued, "I know I can't get the first one but if only I could see you all together again; it'd really make my life complete. Please Kate, do it for me"

the last 6 words struck a nerve and Kate felt tears prick in her eyes. Her father was dying and she would do anything to make him happy. "I'll do it for you, Dad. And for mum"

_so there we have it! John Winchester is dying. Dying from lung cancer that's spread to his liver, kidneys and bowel. Let's just say he doesn't have a hell of a lot of time left. Please review, you know it gets me pumped. I love the name Wallace Rodgers Memorial Hospice. It's mine so back off! You can't use it unless you ask nicely…_


	2. Reliving the Past

Chapter 2: Reliving the Past

Flashback 

A 22 year old Kate lay awake in her bed. She knew what was happening the next day and had convinced herself that maybe if she stayed awake then tomorrow couldn't come. Her younger brother and her father had been involved in a huge fight about Stanford and Sam was moving out the next day. She turned over as the door opened and a tall lanky figure crept in, quickly put on their pyjamas and got into bed. Dean was fast asleep next to her, sprawled out and drooling slightly. She slipped out of her bed and into Sam's.

"_hey Kate" he said softly and she sniffled. He wrapped his arms around her and she breathed in his scent. "I don't want you to go to college, Sammy. I'll miss you too much!" she exclaimed quietly and buried her head into his chest. "I have to. I have to get away from this life" he retorted and she gripped his shirt a little tighter, "no you don't! there are plenty of things here that are normal!" _

_he snorted, "like what?" she shrugged and thought about it, "the toaster. That's normal and you don't really want to part with our perfectly normal toaster, do you?" he chuckled, "I think the toaster can live without me bashing it silly every morning to try and get the toast out."_

_Kate wiped away the tear that fell down her cheek, "don't leave me here. You're the only one who understands me. Dean's so tied up with dad and the demon now that he hasn't got any time for his twin anymore. I hardly take part in any gigs now because they've always got it covered" he rubbed her back soothingly, "you know, you could always leave as well. No one says you have to stay with them." Sam said and Kate shook her head, "as much as they don't need me, they somehow do need me too. It's a strange state of affairs around here"_

_He laughed again. "there we go with the word strange again! you see how easy it is to call our family strange or abnormal?" he sighed and Kate felt the conversation was over. "I'm gonna go back to bed now. think about what I said." She kissed him on the forehead and crept back into her own bed. Dean had slipped over even further into her space and she shoved him backwards just a little too hard. He fell off the bed, taking the covers with him. Sam leant over and turned on the light. Both Sam and Kate laughed at the now pouting man sitting on the floor, "haha, very funny." He said sarcastically and stood up, then threw the covers over the bad and settled down again. "goodnight Sammy" Kate said softly. "night Katie" he replied and turned out the light._

End flashback 

"Katie?" her father asked and shook her. She stirred and opened an eye, "morning Daddy. Did I fall asleep here?" she asked groggily and pried herself off of the hard chair she lay on. "yeah you did. There's someone here to see you" he stepped back and she saw Sam standing in the doorway. He didn't look a day over 23. "morning Kate" he said softly and leant down to hug her. She joined in on the hug and kissed him lightly on the cheek, "morning Babe. What are you doing here?" he pulled away and glanced at their father,

"Dad told me you'd be here" he stated and Kate felt betrayed, "Dad, I thought we were going to ring Sam about it together!" she said angrily and Sam took her by the arm, "come on, we'll go walk in the garden" he said quietly and Kate gave in to his pleading tone. "I could never say no to you when we were younger" she said, defeated and trailed Sam out to the gardens. "Dean misses you" he said vaguely, "I've been asked several times if I know where you are. I hate lying to him"

Kate patted his shoulder, "I know it's hard but I just can't face him. I don't know what he'll say or do or think. It scares me to think about it. If we can just keep these meetings private and you don't tell him that you know where I am then it'll work out fine" she changed the subject, "so, do I have a sister in law yet? Do I have a niece or nephew running around too?"

He smiled, "you've got both. Mel's my wife and we have 2 daughters, Deanna and Kaitlin. Deanna's 2 next week, you should come to her birthday party. Dad'll be there." He rambled on and Kate didn't notice the tear that ran down her own cheek. Sam looked over and stopped, "what's wrong?" he asked and she laughed, "I'm just so happy for you! You've got a loving wife, beautiful kids and a great house. I'm just wondering why you'd want your sister back in your life"

He took her by the shoulders and waited until she looked him in the eye, "why wouldn't I? You're my sister, my wife wants to meet you so badly, my kids need another female influence other than Mel and the house seems empty without your beautiful golden aura in it" she snorted, "my aura's golden? The only thing I could teach your kids is how to defend themselves and how rock salt repels spirits" she said

"come on. The house next to us is for sale. We'll buy it for you and you can move in." Sam offered and Kate scoffed, "I couldn't let you buy me a house! You are not going to spend that much money on this plan!" he shrugged, "we'll pay rent then. I just want you and Elle in that house by the end of the month" he turned and walked back to the hospital. She sighed. She wasn't going to get out of this one.

Flashback 

Kate sat on her bed and listened to the amplified voices outside the room. Her father and Sam were fighting about college again and it looked like Sam had gone too far this time. Dean entered the room quickly and shut the door behind him softly, "it's like a battlefield out there!" he exclaimed and then noticed the tears that welled up in Kate's eyes. "what are you crying about?" he asked and she shushed him. Outside they could hear Sam yelling even louder, "I hate you! Every day I wish that you weren't my father and I had a normal family instead of this fucked up thing we've got going here!" they heard heavy breathing and then John calmly talking, "out." Sam snorted, "what do you mean, out?" John spoke again in the scarily calm voice he possessed, "you know what I mean. I want you out by tomorrow morning. You want to go to college so much? Then go. I don't ever want to see your face again"

_Kate listened intently to the pair of footsteps. 1 headed for the bedroom next door and the other headed for the front door. She gripped Dean's arm tighter than before and sobbed into his shoulder. Dean rubbed her back and soothed her in a comforting way. after a while it occurred that Sam might not have gone anywhere. She tore out of the bedroom and the front door to see her dear little brother sitting on the lawn, crying softly. She stood there for a while and cried too, trying not to get noticed by him. Kate went back into the bedroom and lay down on the bed. She'd barely been there 5 seconds before her eyes welled up again and the pillow was soaked with salty tears._

End Flashback 

Kate danced around the huge entrance of number 43 Heysen Avenue with Elle in her arms. Her new home. The movers finished putting the last of the boxes down and she heard the huge truck drive away. The house was massive, she didn't know what to do with all of the space. It was all planned. In approximately 5 minutes Sam and Mel would bring Dean and the girls over to 'meet the new neighbour'. She decided that she'd try moving a little bit of furniture into place before then. Kate dragged the armchairs and couch over into the largest room in the house, trying not to scratch the wooden floors. Elle uncooperatively jumped on the couches as Kate tried to move them.

"Honey, do you have to do that while mummy's trying to move the seats?" she asked the little girl and Elle giggled madly. She lifted the girl up and blew a raspberry on her stomach, "you're my little Elle Bell, aren't you? Yeah!" she said and settled the girl on her hip. Elle herself was gorgeous. She looked like an angel with rich brown hair, bright green eyes and a round full face. There was a knock on the door and Kate looked at her watch. Sam was right on time.

She opened the door and was met by a small group of people. There was Sam, someone she presumed was Mel, two little girls and Dean. Kate shook hands with all of them and set Elle down. Elle immediately hit it off with Deanna and they ran off. "I'm Ainslie McManus and this is my daughter, Elle" she introduced herself under a fake name and invited them into the not yet unpacked kitchen. Mel set down a dish of something sweet smelling, "just a little something for dessert" she said excitedly and giggled.

Mel reminded Kate of a schoolgirl. She was reasonably young and petite. She wore a pair of jeans with a tight jumper and a huge belt buckle around her waist. Kate glanced at Dean. He was looking down at the floor hazily and he didn't seem to have noticed it was his sister standing in front of him. Deanna ran into the kitchen and tugged at Dean's leg, demanding to be picked up. He smiled warmly at his niece and sat her on his thigh.

Elle came in soon afterwards and also demanded to be picked up. "how olds Deanna?" Kate asked and Sam shifted Kaitlin a little, "she'll be 2 next week. What about Elle?" he asked and Kate sat Elle on the island in the middle of the room. "Elle was 3 a few months ago." Mel gasped, "you should bring Elle to Deanna's birthday party tomorrow! It'll be great and you can get to know the rest of the neighbourhood!" she exclaimed eagerly.

Kate smiled, "that'd be great! I'd love for Elle to meet some other kids around her age. The last place we lived at was an apartment and there were no other children in the building" Mel cleared her throat, "so does Elle's dad live with you or…' she trailed off and Kate covered Elle's ears, "I adopted Elle in England about 2 years ago. I don't like to say it around her in case it sticks and she remembers it later in life. I want Elle to have the best possible life here. something better than my childhood anyway"

She glanced at Sam, who glared at her and she realised she'd taken the conversation too far. "yeah…" she said and put the dessert in the newly connected fridge. "so, how long have you guys been married?" she motioned at Sam and Mel. "almost 3 years now. never been happier"

Before they knew it, almost 4 hours had passed and Mel said it was time they were getting home now. She and Elle waved goodbye from the doorway and then closed the heavy oak door. Elle was soon asleep on her shoulder and Kate set her down in her bed, then kissed her on the forehead and turned on the nightlight. Elle never slept without it and Kate would always leave her bedroom door open so she could find her way to her adoptive mother's bed. Kate slept in her room, surrounded by moving boxes. Tomorrow she'd unpack them and then they'd attend Deanna's party. She'd see her father and her brothers and nieces. It was a good start to her new life.

Kate awoke early the next morning to Elle jumping on the bed. The clock next to her read 6.45. she groaned and then swiftly grabbed Elle, pulling her down onto the bed next to her. Elle squealed with delight and giggled loudly. Kate blew a raspberry on her stomach and tickled her. After a while Kate decided that she wouldn't be able to get back to sleep with Elle around so she decided that the best thing to do would be to get the little girl dressed and fed for the party that started at 10.

Amazingly, 10.00 rolled around fairly quickly and Kate found herself locking the door to her new home. She felt kind of stupid doing it because she was only going next door. Elle had uncovered a seemingly hyperactive mood and she was over the other side of the fence in the blink of an eye. Kate made her way over and saw Sam standing on the balcony, trying to tie balloons around the poles. "morning Sam!" she yelled cheerfully and scared the living shit out of him. She saw him physically shake and cower, then peer over to see who it was. "morning Ainslie" he replied and continued to tie the balloons.

Deanna screamed out of the house like a race car with a trail of little friends. Elle followed them and in no time they were all running around the garden. She moved around to the back of the house and saw an array of parents and friends. Mel took her by the arm and started to introduce her to people. soon Kate was laughing and talking with people her own age, something that hadn't happened in a long time. she went inside to get herself a drink and found her dad and Sam talking, John with a bottle of water in his hand.

Dean chose that moment to enter the kitchen and Sam loudly introduced John and Kate, "Ainslie this is my Dad, John. Dad this is Ainslie, our new neighbour" he motioned to both of them and they shook hands. As soon as Dean left John put down his bottle and wrapped his arms around Kate. "how's it going Katie? You haven't been ratted out yet?" he asked and Kate shook her head, "no, thank god. It still doesn't feel right though. Have you seen Elle?" she asked him in return and he shook his head, "I think it's best that she doesn't see me in case she recognises me"

Kate nodded in agreement, "that's a good idea" she winked at him, "I have to go mingle now, excuse me" she left with her drink and John turned back to Sam. "how long do you reckon it'll last?' he asked his son and Sam shrugged, "it depends on how long she can keep it going. Kate's a Winchester, she's built to last" he said and John nodded, "she is. My baby inherited her father's cunning mind and her mother's silence. It'll be a long time before Dean even gets a whiff of secrecy"

Meanwhile Kate was outside again, still laughing with other women about amusing things their children had done or said. The hours passed quickly and soon everyone was saying their goodbyes. Kate had Elle asleep on her shoulder and said bye to the family, then headed over to her house. She got inside and immediately realised something wasn't right. It was…cold. She'd left the heater on so it shouldn't have been that chilly. She stood in the entrance for a while, then felt a familiar whoosh behind her. "oh no" she said quietly and put Elle down on the armchair in the lounge room.

No matter where she went, Kate always kept salt with her. She placed a circle of it around the armchair, and then around where she was standing. Something flickered in the corner of her eye and she spun around. A young girl stood there. Kate's head started to thump with extreme pain and she collapsed onto the floor.

Flashback 

_Kate stood in the middle of the deserted room, wondering where her father could be. She was only 7 and her dad had left her there, telling her not to move. Someone pushed past her and she turned around. Nothing there. Another cold feeling rushed through her body and she twirled around on the spot. She wanted so badly to run away but she couldn't disobey her father. A small child her age ran out of the shadows and beckoned to her silently. Kate felt herself being dragged out of the salt circle around her and pushed towards the other little girl._

_The girl had a hollow, echoing giggle that rebounded off of the white walls and surrounded them. Then the girl disappeared and her laugh was all that was left behind. She was about to step back inside the circle her father had created for her when she was picked up off of her feet and twirled around the room violently. A loud crack sounded as John Winchester stood underneath her, trying to shoot the demon holding his daughter with rock salt. He hit it finally and as Kate hurtled toward the laminate he danced around, trying to figure out the best place to stand so he could catch her._

_She landed heavily in his arms and immediately latched onto his leather jacket. He hushed her and hugged her small body to his, stroking her hair and telling her it was going to be alright._

End Flashback 

Kate woke the next morning lying on the hardwood floors. She immediately rubbed her eyes and checked the armchair close by. Elle still lay there her head to the side, resting on the top of the armrest. She breathed a sigh of relief and stood up. instantly she started a checklist in her head. Today she had to go shopping for food, a new microwave and superglue for the vase that had broken while it was in the moving van.

Elle stirred as Kate was doing this and after a few minutes of grogginess she seemed to rediscover her hyperactive streak. After getting dressed she searched through her unpacked boxes and found her Barbie ball, then dragged Kate outside to play with her. Kate had no objections of course. They threw around the ball for a while until Kate stopped suddenly to listen to scuffling over the other side of the fence. She held the ball under her arm and stood on one of the planter boxes to see Dean wrestling with the clothes line while tying to keep baby Kaitlin from falling on her head.

Kate put her head back over the fence, "Elle Baby, can you stay here? Mummy's got to help someone. I'll be back soon" she expertly jumped the fence and took Kaitlin from Dean's arms. He breathed a sigh of relief and then unpegged the piece of clothing from the clothes line. Kate giggled and once Dean was finished, handed the infant over again. "how would you like to come over for a cup of coffee?" she asked and he nodded while settling Kaitlin, "that'd be great. Mind if I bring the girls over too?"

A/N: so there's chapter 2 up and running. I could have made this 3 different chapters but somehow it seemed better as just 1. next chapter, Dean and Kate talk over a cup of coffee.


	3. Coffee Confessions

Chapter 3: Coffee Confessions

_Cuppa coffee anyone? Dean and Kate discuss their lives (his real one, her made up one) over a cup of coffee._

_Isn't Elle cute! She's based on my neighbours kid (who's actually a little boy) they're the same age! I don't know why but it just seemed that Kate should have a kid… don't ask. I have weird impulses every now and then…_

_Last chapter we had some good ol' vision time! –does a little dance- where would we be without those visions?_

Kate placed the pot of coffee on the table outside and sat down next to Dean. "so, Dean. Where do you come from?" she asked, knowing full well where. "Kansas" he replied simply and watched as Kate poured coffee into mugs. She put a cup in front of him and he stared at it for a while, "from what I hear you're supposed to be a real daredevil" she said and he smiled, "I've mellowed out a bit now" he replied.

"any siblings apart from Sam?" she asked quietly and he took a sip of the coffee, "yeah. My sister. Well, twin sister actually. I haven't seen her for a long time. what about you?" Kate nodded, "I have 2 brothers, David and Sean. One's older and the other's younger; I haven't seen either of them for about 5 years now. I really miss them though."

Dean ran his finger over the top of the coffee cup, "why don't you try to get in touch with them?" he asked and she shuddered at the cold, "because I'm scared. I did something unforgivable to my older brother and I don't know what he'll do or say to Me." He took another swig of his coffee, "nothing is so bad that you can't talk to your brother about it. The thing with Kate is" he paused, "my sisters name is Kate. I think she might be feeling guilty at the moment."

She cocked her head, "why?" he looked over the garden to where the girls were playing, "because she always runs away when things get too hard to handle. That's my sister's only flaw" Kate wanted to jump up and say she wasn't a coward, but restrained herself. "we were involved in an accident 4 years ago. We were arguing in the car and I ran right into a huge tree. I was in a coma for most of those 4 years and now I'm trying to find her"

Kate shrugged, "maybe she doesn't want to be found" she said and Dean scratched the back of his head, "I honestly don't know. Even though we were this close" he held up 2 entwined fingers, "she still seems to think I'll be eternally angry at her when she comes back. The thing is, I just want to see her again"

They kept talking and Kate held back the urge to spurt out that she was his sister. Several times it did almost make it out but she kept it to herself, pursed her lips and encouraged him to keep talking. The sound of Dean's voice was almost soothing. It was scratchy and well worn like their father's but still gentle and loving like Sam's.

The day wore on and as they talked, their coffee sat as still as the surface of a lake in their cups. It grew colder and colder as the moments passed, as the conversation did. Kate was beginning to get the feeling she should tell Dean who she really was. Somehow it seemed very right and very wrong at the same time. the more she thought about it, the less wrong it seemed. Her head started to hurt again and she realised the same thing as last night was happening.

The little girl appeared again and stood right next to Dean. He seemed to notice the sudden chill and looked around, then decided it was nothing. Kate looked at the girl, horrified that she had come to wear out Kate's mind yet again. She tried to stand up but it was like someone had trapped her to the chair with chains. She gave a strained smile to Dean, who was wondering what the hell was happening.

The feeling gave way after a few seconds, leaving Kate to take a huge gulp of air. The cold feeling disappeared and it suddenly clicked. The spirit, the younger version of herself; was scared of Dean. As long as she was around him, it couldn't harm her. It was all falling into place. The longer she hid her true identity, the longer the spirit would linger around her and her home.

She had to do something, and fast.

A/N: that was a short little one, almost as short as myself.

Next chapter… you'll just have to wait and see:P


	4. Living on Borrowed Time

Chapter 4: Living on Borrowed Time

A/N: I'm getting a little carried away with the flashbacks in this story but I think that they should be in it! Give 'em a chance!

You'll have to see what happens in this one, I'm not gonna tell you!

Flashback 

_Sam grabbed Dean's foot and shook it violently, pulling Dean down towards the end of the bed a little "come on Jerk, get up" he said. Dean took hold of the head board as Sam automatically pulled both of Dean's feet toward his chest. Dean's body stretched out a few centimetres above the mattress. After a while Sam gave up and dropped Dean's feet. Dean let go of the head board, pulled the cover back over him and turned over, "I won. Piss off" he said groggily and waved Sam away._

_Sam went into the kitchen and boiled the kettle, then placed a huge mug of coffee on the table next to Dean's bed. Dean didn't falter though. Sam sat on him and listened as Dean's air supply exited his body. Dean groaned, "oh god! At least it's not as bad as when Kate does it" as if almost on cue, Kate entered the small vicinity with a few bags of supplies. She saw Sam sitting on Dean and squealed with delight._

"quick Sammy, move!" she said while removing her shoes. Taking a run up she twisted in the air, landing in a handstand with her palms on dean's ass, then dropped forward and landed in the cradle of his spine. Dean lost his breath rapidly and emitted a high pitched, forced groan. She massaged his shoulders, "come on Deany, time to get up!" he shoved at her and she dug her thumbs underneath his shoulder blades. He writhed in pain and grabbed some of her Van Morrison t-shirt, pulling her down beside him then pushing her off the bed.

"Dean, 2. Sam and Kate, nil." He said and rubbed his face into the pillow. Kate lay down on the bed with her head in the dip of his back, "I actually think Dean deserves a sleep-in, don't you Sam?" she curled her hand into a fist and brought it down onto his thigh. Pain shot through his leg, then it went numb. He twisted around and looked her in the eye, "you are so dead" he stopped and looked as if he was considering something, "when I get feeling back in my leg. Then I'm gonna kill you." Kate sat on him again and played with his ears.

"you just hate people touching your ears, don't you Dean?" she rubbed them and them stuck her fingers in there and twisted them around. He slapped at her hands and she then lay down over him, "what else can we do to piss you off?" she turned to Sam, "Sammy did you do the ultimate torture?" he shook his head, "I was waiting for you. He's always so much more frustrated when you do it" she pushed herself up and tossed her hair back, then turned around and pulled Dean's underwear up to a dangerous height.

He squealed as she kept on pulling up and pounded his fists on the mattress, "alright! I'll get up! Just don't pull any higher or you might split me up the middle!" Kate triumphantly punched the air, "victory to Kate and Sam!" she cheered and Sam laughed. Dean pulled her down next to him and started to tickle her, "you haven't won yet sister! I know your weak spots!" her laughs and cries of pains melted into one and Kate hit him as she tried to get away. He grabbed her foot and tickled the bottom while she yelled and laughed, her body shaking.

The laughter died away as Dean stopped tickling her. She panted slightly and Dean got up to pull his jeans on. "I still reckon I won" she said, out of breath. Dean gave an exasperated sigh, "I win every fight! I thought after knowing me for your whole life you'd learnt that" he turned away and Kate stood up on the bed, then latched onto his back. John came in, covered in blood and stood next to Sam to watch the fight. "bet you 10 bucks Kate'll get Dean to give" Sam said to his Dad and John chuckled, "I'll take that bet"

Less than a minute later Kate had Dean pinned to the floor with her knee in his ribcage, "do you give?' she asked. He struggled and she pushed her knee in further, "come on, you know you can't take much more" she taunted and he nodded, "alright, I give" he said and she let go of him. Sam held out his hand, "pay up." John sighed and handed over a 10 dollar note. His youngest pocketed it with a grin.

End Flashback

Standing on Solid Rock,

Standing on Sacred Ground,

Living on Borrowed Time,

No ways to change further down the line,

Kate received a message on her cell that morning that changed her world as she knew it.

'Ms Winchester, your father's condition is decreasing rapidly, please make your way down to Wallace Rodgers Hospice immediately so his doctor can discuss this with you.'

The voice calmly said. She drove at record speed to the hospice while trying to calm Elle and ring Sam at the same time. She explained the message to him and he told her he was on the way there as well with Dean.

Today was the day. She wasn't going to lie any more. She removed the brown coloured contacts and rubbed off the liberal amounts of foundation and eyeliner she put on each day. she looked at the old Kate, the one that didn't care what she looked like in the morning or whether her hair stuck out at odd angles after killing spirits. She liked this Kate better than the other one she had been using to mask her identity.

She stopped on the side of the road and stared at her reflection for a few minutes. It felt almost good to be herself again.

Funny how your life can change in the blink of an eye. It looked like her father's life was going to go from being on earth to not existing at all. She entered the hospice holding Elle's tiny hand and together they walked up to floor 3, room 142. she'd memorised the numbers and they were almost automatic now.

Dean and Sam stood out the front of the room being briefed by the physician on John's case. Kate stood at a distance for a while, then marched up to the doctor and her brothers, "Sam, could you please look after Elle for me?" she asked and Sam picked Elle up. "Kate?" Dean asked and went to follow her but Sam held him back, "wait until later Dean. We don't need to start a fight right now" he said quietly.

John was hooked up to a large amount of machines. Kate fought her way through the cords and found her father's warm hand. He shifted slightly at her touch and she shushed him, "it's ok Dad, it's just me. Just Katie" he opened his bleary eyes and smiled at her, "Dean knows?" he rasped and Kate smiled sadly, "sort of. I kind of barged in here without talking to him. Don't worry though, I'm going to explain it all later" she patted his hand,

"you can't leave me here Daddy. Not by myself. We never spent enough time together when I was little. I felt like a stranger kissed me goodnight and woke me up in the morning. You have no idea what the feels like. But now I think that we've gotten to know each other and I'm glad that we did" she said quietly, a tear running down her cheek.

She sniffed loudly and John wiped away the salty tears that dared to run down her cheeks, "there's one thing I need to know. During all that hunting, drinking, those long trips and all the upsets; have I been a father?" he asked and she nodded, "you might not have been like all the other apple pie dads but you were mine and you loved me. That's all a father needs to do, love his kids"

He nodded and lay back down. She kissed him on the forehead as his eyes slowly faltered and shut. His hand went limp and a machine started beeping. Kate's eyes widened. after all they'd been through, her father was finally gone. She'd gotten to say goodbye and that's what mattered. John's chest stopped moving and Kate lay her head down on it.

"Bye Daddy" she whispered, "I love you"

A/N: awwwwwww, goodbye John!–tear- I almost cried when I wrote this, no kidding. Next chapter, we have a little… confrontation. –taps fingers together evilly-


End file.
